Tallest tower plans move forward

The designers say the mast will give people a new view of Brighton

Architects who have drawn up plans for Britain's tallest observation tower in Sussex have said they hope planning permission will be granted by October.

The £20m Brighton i360 will rise 150m (492ft) above sea level on the site of the derelict West Pier in Brighton.

David Marks and Julia Barfield, who also designed the London Eye, and the West Pier Trust submitted a planning application on Wednesday.

If approved, it is hoped work on the attraction will start early in 2007.

An exhibition illustrating the proposed tower will run throughout the summer at the Brighton Fishing Museum.

It will be positioned at the beach end of the damaged West Pier, and offer visitors spectacular views of Brighton and Hove, the South Downs and the south coast.

It will accommodate about 125 people in a fully enclosed "pod", and could be open to the public by summer 2008.

The Victorian Grade I listed pier closed in 1975 and was reduced to a metal skeleton by storm damage and fire in 2003.